This Crazy Danish Summer

It’s 10 pm as I write this and it’s 24 degrees out there (75 F). If we got 24 last summer, during the heat of the day, it was time to celebrate. Last summer was not really a summer at all, but this summer…

This summer we’re apparently making up for all the cold days of all the cold summers of the past.

Now, I know that Denmark is not unique here. Places all over the globe are breaking temperature records, but Denmark wasn’t made for this.

First off, 85% of Danish clothing is regulation black. Black is hard to wear during these record-breaking temperatures, but Danes bravely trudge on.

A/C? What’s that? Riding the Metro during rush hour is so sweltering hot, completely drenched in sweat I was close to passing out yesterday. At least the S-train and the buses have windows you can (sorta) open.

When the temperatures got into the 90’s F (30’s plus in Celsius) in Seattle, I used to head for the stores to cool off. Here? I went to Jysk (sort of like the Bed Bath and Beyond) the other day and it was like entering a sweat lodge! Seriously, even the grocery stores aren’t very cold (which is why I often like to linger in the dairy section).

I am told by the locals that the proper response to this unusually hot weather is to complain about it. So that’s what I’m doing right now. Assimilating.